Sunday, 14 September 2014

The Women of 'Elixir Bound' by Katie L. Carroll

I originally conceivedELIXIR BOUND
as a there-and-back-again quest, a sort of tribute to my sister Kylene, who
died at the age of 16. I had hoped to give her a fantasy tale of her own. When
it proved too hard to write the story from the POV of a character inspired by
her, I decided to try from a different character's POV: her sister Katora's.

This really changed the direction of the story. Where Kylene was
sweet, sensitive, and wore her feelings on her sleeve, Katora was stubborn,
independent, and also sensitive but would never want to show it.ELIXIR BOUND then became a story about
a young woman (Katora) who must go on a quest to find out whether or not she
will become guardian to a secret healing Elixir and bind herself to it.

The binding part was key because it wouldn't allow to just use the
Elixir as she wanted to; the binding would force her to use it in a way that
also served the Great Mother (who is also called Mother Nature, and is
basically the highest form of being in Katora's world). Now I had a story where
a very independent character was forced to make a decision that would seriously
hinder her independence and impact the path the rest of her life would take.

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Cover Designer: Charlotte Volnek

This whole story line was a personal journey that was paralleled by
a physical journey in which Katora and her companions had to find the secret
ingredient for the Elixir. Notice the total lack of mention of a love interest.
It was really important to me that Katora's motives for the quest had nothing
to do with a boy.

It was also important that Katora be chosen for this quest, not
either of her two older sisters or her younger brother. I've always wondered
why in so many real and fictional worlds the oldest son is the one who is
entitled to the inheritance, so I wanted Katora to be neither the oldest nor a
boy. The reason Katora was chosen as the next guardian of the Elixir, taking
over for her father, was she was person who was best suited for the job.

As I started writing ELIXIR BOUND, I realized I wanted these
themes to be reflected in Katora's world as well. I think a lot of these themes
spilled out of me unconsciously, and only in revision did I become consciously
aware of the feminism in them. Suddenly Katora's world had turned very pagan
with the people following a female deity (the Great Mother) closely tied to
nature. From there I sort of ran with the idea that females would, in a sense,
rule this world. Though I kept it that Katora would take over for her father
because I wanted some balance in the world. Women didn't need to rule
everything.

And Kylene was still there on the quest and plays an important role
(though not the starring one). I wanted her there to contrast Katora's
personality because there are other strong female characters besides the
bulldozer type, which is kind of how I think of Katora. I needed a female who
was strong in character but not in your face about it. Also, Zelenka, a member
of the miniature demick species, was an interesting female character. In many
ways very much like Katora, but also a bit of an adversary to Katora. They
never quite get along, mostly because they are so alike.

There does end up being a love interest on the quest. One I had to
emphasize and play up more as I went through revisions because several of my
early readers didn't think it played a big enough role. Katora initially
resists forming a relationship with Hirsten, the handsome son of a famous
mapmaker. She doesn't want anything to distract her while on her mission and
while she has such an important decision to make.Though the quest part of the story is not
driven by romance, Katora's ability to realize her capacity for love (and in
turn why she has resisted her feelings for Hirsten) does play into her decision
on whether or not to become guardian of the Elixir.

As you can see, I thought a lot about the role of females in the
made-up world of ELIXIR BOUND as I was writing it. I'd like to think my
story offers a feministic look at females and hopefully speaks to teenage girls
in a positive way. Although, I didn't want to force any certain didactic
message about feminism in the story...more an offering of female characters and
how they take control of their lives and futures. Themes I certainly plan on
considering while writing future works as well. #

Come back here tomorrow for the 1st day of Katie's Book Blitz and Giveaway of Elixir Bound.

Kudos to you for your message for girls--"an offering of female characters and how they take control of their lives and futures." We need more characters like this for our girls. The story sounds like one girls (and boys) would like...and even grandmas too! Best wishes on the blitz!

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Favourite writing exercises to overcome writer's block in 15 minutes.

Take a picture and write about it for 15 minutes without allowing your pen to lift off the page,

Describe your hand

In 2 paragraphs make your protagonist act out of character.

Turn off the monitor and free write for 15 minutes without stopping. Don't turn on the screen until time is up.

Find at least 3 figures in the clouds. Show how each figure has an emotional impact on your character. e.g a ferocious animal, a wizened face, a melting clock

Type for 15 minutes then delete. Topic: Who am I - honestly?

Get a group of friends to fire questions about your story, or a specific character, so that you have to answer them off the top of your head. You will think so fast to explain (or defend) you'll even make up information that hasn't happened yet. The result makes your story clearer to you, and you will be surprised how relevant some of the new input is.